CH 96

Chapter 96: Spring Festival Gala

Since the winter season began, the tea that Gongxi Qiao and Xi Qing usually drank was changed to black tea, and the servants in the manor carefully arranged everything the master needed and always took care to keep their mouths shut and their eyes in check.

Therefore, although there were some rumors about Gongxi Qiao and Xi Qing, both big and small, whether it was journalists or relevant personnel, they couldn’t find definitive evidence. Therefore, in everyone’s eyes, the scandal of their ambiguous relationship was merely the fantasy of some bored people.

During the two days before the New Year, Gongxi Qiao had to go to the National TV studio every day to rehearse for the Spring Festival Gala. Luckily, he was high-ranking enough that he didn’t have to stay in the studio around the clock like everyone else, so he was able to go home early for dinner and sleep every night.

Winter in the Imperial Capital was always accompanied by rain and snow. Gongxi Qiao and Xi Qing were lying in bed after some exercise, listening to the sound of rain and snow outside the window. He said with some emotion, “I love these kinds of days.”

Xi Qing printed a kiss on his forehead: “I’ll accompany you home tomorrow night.”

“Good.” Gongxi Qiao raised his head with a smile and kissed Xi Qing on the corner of his mouth. “Go to sleep. I have to go to National Station first thing in the morning.”

“Okay.” Gently stroking the top of Gongxi Qiao’s hair, Xi Qing looked at the sleeping face of the person next to him. Even though there were questions in his heart, he didn’t want to ask them anymore.

Some questions weren’t important, because the most important and valuable person was already around, and nothing else was worth mentioning.

For Flower Country people, the Spring Festival was the most important holiday of the year, because it represented the end of the old and the beginning of the new.

People came and went in the dressing room at the National Station, and it was a busy place. In fact, those who could enter the dressing room were already of high status. Many of the dance ensembles and actors were crowded in corridors or large meeting rooms, where other makeup artists did their makeup.

Status determined their treatment, so even though the makeup artists outside were busy doing a bunch of work, certain stylists were able to serve big stars without panic, and the big stars were able to sit comfortably on a sofa, cosseted and guarded by a group of assistants and agents.

Because of that, people would keep moving up the ladder and keep getting more for themselves.

“Qiao Shao, you have very good skin. The pores are almost invisible. This kind of skin is very suitable for the camera.” What the makeup artist didn’t say was that this kind of face was especially suitable for large HD screens.

Artists in this circle often turned their days and nights upside down, and often had to wear some heavy makeup for their roles, so it was just normal for their skin texture to not look as good as it did on TV. That was why she felt so emotional when she saw how soft and smooth Gongxi Qiao’s skin was.

No matter how good their skin was, people in the entertainment industry couldn’t resist all kinds of tossing and turning. If a person who had been in the industry for two years could still maintain such good skin, they probably didn’t work hard for filming very often, and they didn’t stay up all night drinking alcohol to grab a resource.

Some people were really born with good fortune, to have smooth sailing all the way, and also get the Golden Leaf Award film emperor that others could only dream of.

“Thanks for the compliment.” Gongxi Qiao smiled at the mirror, “I have to treat this face well in order to make a living.” After that, he also mentioned in passing some of the maintenance products he usually used and so on.

Fortunately, he didn’t say that he didn’t do much maintenance or that he was naturally beautiful, and everyone in the dressing room was amused.

Only Gongxi Qiao’s few assistants scoffed at his so-called maintenance methods. How come they didn’t see Qiao Shao put so much effort into taking care of his skin?

Because the song chosen by Gongxi Qiao had characteristics of the Tianjin period, the program team specially prepared a purple robe and jade crown set for him to wear that only the National Teacher of the Tianjin dynasty could wear. They also arranged the stage effects with the characteristics of the Tianjin dynasty, striving to get less complaints about the effects from the audience, and striving to get compliments instead.

The so-called Spring Festival Gala was a variety of arts and culture, comedy sketches, opera and acrobatics, magic and songs. It was a lively and enjoyable event.

Just ten minutes before the live broadcast of the Spring Festival Gala, the program list was finally released to the public, and everyone found that in addition to some of the old faces of the Spring Festival Gala this year, there were many young participants. The most surprising thing was that Gongxi Qiao also participated.

Many people had heard about Gongxi Qiao’s possible participation in the Spring Festival Gala, but there hadn’t been any official confirmation, so everyone was still skeptical. Now that the program list was made public, they dared to really believe it.

However, after everyone saw that Gongxi Qiao’s program was a song solo, there were some doubts in their minds. Gongxi Qiao was an actor, could he sing well?

Even Qiao fans were apprehensive. They had never heard Gongxi Qiao sing before and although the family’s male god was well-rounded and had a good voice, it didn’t mean he could sing well ah. And what the hell was “Venerate Heaven Song”? From the name alone, it didn’t seem like a pop song.

They were letting an actor sing a profound folk song. It was said that the Spring Festival Gala didn’t allow lip syncing and it was all live singing. Just thinking about that image, it was scary, okay?

The Spring Festival Gala soon began with Qiao fans in a state of both anticipation and concern. The opening was the long familiar dance ensemble with a chorus. Then, a few hosts began to sing the praises of the past and look forward to the future.

Gongxi Qiao’s appearance was at around 8:30. In order to preserve his appearance for the stage, his makeup was only put on after the broadcast had started, and he wasn’t allowed to eat anything, so he only drank a few sips of glucose sugar water.

The live broadcast had strict control over the time. The amount of time for each performance was budgeted long beforehand. If a three-minute show ended up taking four minutes, the anxious director behind the scenes would definitely curse their fathers.

Before it was Gongxi Qiao’s turn to appear, he was already waiting backstage. When the hosts started to announce his performance, he was already standing on the elevating platform.

The National Station had always been rich and powerful, so the live broadcast of the Gala had countless cameras, in order to achieve a 360-degree shot of the main characters on stage. Except for the magic shows, of course.

None of the Qiao fans sitting in front of the TV expected Gongxi Qiao to appear with such an image. Anyone with a little bit of knowledge could see that Gongxi Qiao was wearing a costume that clearly carried the style of the Tianjin Dynasty.

The smoke effect, with the glorious ancient architecture on the big screen of the stage, and the dance ensemble dressed in ancient costumes on the stage, told everyone very bluntly that Gongxi Qiao’s song was certainly not a pop song, nor did it look like a folk song.

However, after Gongxi Qiao opened his mouth, everyone froze. It turned out that ……Qiao Shao sang so well?

His voice was clean and ethereal, as if he had never been polluted by the world of mortals, and he called out to the gods in the heavens.

“…… The grains are abundant and we pay respect to the fish……”

“Three salutations to peace, prosperity and happiness ……”

The tune was a bit odd, but it sounded good. Everyone was a bit bewildered as to what song it was. Listening to it made people feel calm, and there was an indescribable sense of awe and gratitude.

There was also Qiao Shao’s demeanor on stage, as though he was performing some kind of worship ritual.

In the audience, Xi Qing looked at the young man on the stage without blinking, as if he was looking at the most beautiful painting in the world.

“What a sacred feeling ……”

“This vocalist is so exemplary, he performs as if it’s real ……”

Listening to the discussion behind him, Xi Qing had a smile on his face and he applauded as soon as Gongxi Qiao finished singing.

He was surrounded by enthusiastic applause, but he couldn’t hear it. He just watched the young man’s back disappear under the elevating platform, then got up and walked to the side.